Line locking and margin releasing mechanism for typewriting machines



July 7, 953 B. HILL ETAL 2,644,556

LINE LOCKING AND MARGIN RELEASING MECHANISM FOR TYPEWRITING MACHINES Filed July 26, 1951 5 Sheets-Sheet l INVTORS LAURENCE a. Hit-L CHARLES WALKER July 7, 1953 L. a. HILL ETAL LINE LOCKING AND MARGIN RELEASING MECHANISM FOR TYPEWRITING MACHINES Filed July 26, 1951 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS NCE a HILL LES WALKER LAuRE CHAR 8Y2 f 'IIIIIIIIIIIII W I A July 7, 1953 L. B. HILL ETAL 2,644,566

LINE LOCKING AND MARGIN RELEASING MECHANISM FOR TYPEWRITING MACHINES Filed July 26, 1951 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 27 3 I ark-""3 36 "i e W Q .4:

INVENTORS LAURENCE a. HILL CHARLES WALKER Patented July 7, 1953 LINE LOCKING AND'MAR-GIN RELEASING 'MECHANISM FOR TYPEWRITING MA- crimes Laurence B. Hill and Charles Walker, Syracuse,

N. Y., assignors to L G. Smith & Corona Typewriters, Inc., Syracuse", N. Y., a corporation of New York Application Jury 26, 1951, Serial No. 238,738

The invention relates toimprovements in line locking and margin releasing mechaniSm,-for typewriting machines.

7 Claims. sci. 197-408) The principal object of the invention, generally stated, is to provide improved means for an tomatically looking a typewriter against typing actuation at adesired marginal. limit of letter feed travel of its platen carriage and for, at will, permitting typing in the reservedleft and right hand marginal spaces on a paper sheet.

A further object. of the inventionis to provide simple and efficient margin stop controlled means for automatically locking the type actions and space bar action of a typewriter when the typing of a line has proceeded to a selected point, and improved margin release. key means for unlocking said actions.

A further object of the invention is to provide improved key controlled. means for disabling .or releasing the margin stop means of a typewriter, to permit typing in reserved left and right. hand margins, and for. restoring an. automatic line locking member of the typewriter to ineffective DOSltlOl'l. I f f To the foregoing and other ends which will appear, the invention consists in the features of construction, arrangements of parts and combinations of devices to be described hereinafter and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, wherein the invention isJillustrated in its preferred embodiment:

Fig. l is a fragmentary vertical, longitudinal sectional view of a typewriter equipped with line view-taken on .the in line the margin release key means in margin releasing position with the lock still inilocking. position and ready for unlocking when the margin release key is released from finger pressure;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary plan view'of the typewriter with parts broken away;

Fig. 5 is a detail-plan iew-of partsof the typewriter showing the adjustable right hand margin stop on the platen carriage in carriage arresting and line locking effecting position;

Fig. 6 is a'view similar to Fig. 5 showing the position of the parts when the margin release key is-depressed after a line'locking operation;

and L i Fig. 7 is a'fragmentary plan View illustrating certain parts of the'machine in normal QrLrest position.

The platen I0 is mounted as usual on a carriage I I which travels transversely of the main framework l2 from right to leftunder' 'controLof the usual escapement, not shown. Mounted in the main frame is a system of type bar'actions only so much of which is shown as is necessaryto an. understanding of the invention. Said type bar action system includes four banks of type or. printing key levers l3 fulcrumed "on a pivot rod 14 supported on the frame. Each key lever has a pin and slot connection 15 with a difie'rent one of a set of bellcranks lli'whic'h'are of [identical size and shape andare fulcrumed'ona pivot rod l1 supportedon'thezframe. Suitable operating linkages, shown inpart at l8, connect to the frame. 1 i

The known left hand marginstop 22 and right hand margin stop 23'are adjustable along'and releasably latchable to the 'margin'stop bar 24 in a known' mannerfsaid barextendmg longitudinally of the carriage I l and being "fix'ed thereto. The known left and right hand final or terminal stops'25 and 26'respe'ctively, are fixed to the stop bar. f

A plate 21 is located behind the stop bar and medially of the sides of the machine and is'fixed to a part of the main framework I2. A lever'28 is pivoted on plate 21 at 29, and a spring 3015 connected to the'lef-t hand arm of this lever'to project the right hand arm of the lever forwardly and engage a stop lug 3| "on said righthand arm with the forward'end of a slot in the plate. 'A

counterstop 32 for the left hand marginstopf and i a counter stop 33 for the right hand marginfstop are disposed at different 1evels,'one for engagement by an abutment portion 22'a'of-stop 22' and the other for engagement by an abutment 23a of stop 23. Stop 23 has a camsurface 23b jcoactive with counter'stop 33 to force-saidkstop rearward and rock the lever28'against the re-' sistance of spring 30, as more fully hereinafter Lever 28 normally holds counter stops 32 and 33 in effective position andis rookable against the resistance of spring 30, bymeans'hereinafter described, to retract them outof effective position. Stop 32 is slidably held to plate 21 to move in a fore and aft extending guide slot in said plate and has a stud 34 "engaged in a ,hole in the right hand arm of lever 28 for shifting of stop.'.32.-by

thelever; --S -top 33- is pivoted to" the. 'righthand from a'stop lugi 3'lon the lever arm which is adapted to arrest leftward swinging of stop 33.

The counter stop controlling or shifting lever adjacent the right hand side of the machine and is journaled at 4I--42. A rearwardly extending rock arm 43 is fixed to the rock shaft adjacent the right hand side of the machine, and the upper end of a link 44 is pivoted to the rear end" of said arm at 45. The spring 30 connected to the left hand arm of lever 28 serves also as return spring for the rock shaft and its rock arms and for the link 44.

The above described margin stop and counter stop devices and their mountings and the counter stop shifting means, are generally similar to those embodied in the known Smith-Corona standard typewriter and disclosed .in the United States patent to Carl Gabrielson, No. 1,933,550, November 7, 1933. Theimprovements now will be described. p

A horizontal stud 46jis1fiXed to the lower end of link Mandextends through a closed up-anddown extending slot 41 in' the rear end of a rearwardly extending arm of a bellcrank .48 which has a laterally offset pendant arm located adiacent the right hand side of the machine. Bellcrank 48 is journaled on a pivot rod 49 which extends horizontally and transversely of the machine and isfixed to framework l2. Stud 46 norcrank fulcrum rod I"! a line-locking bar controlling bellcrank 50 which has a forwardly extendingforked arm and an upstanding arm. A fore and aft .extending link 51 is pivoted at 52 to the lower'endof the pendent arm of bellcrank 48 and ispivoted at 53 to the upper end of the upstanding arm of bellcrank 50. The bellcranks 4B and 50 and their connecting link 5i are normally yieldingly held in their rest position, shown in Fig. 1, by a returning spring 54 connected to the upstanding arm of the bellcrank 5%. Return movement of the connected parts 43-5l-50 is limited or arrested by the engagement of the lower branch of the forked arm of bellcrank 59 under a laterally extendingstud 55 .on a margin release key lever 56. V a

,The margin'releas'e keylever 55 is fulcrumed Ifectiveposition thereof shown in Fig. 1.

j.:to;a'fior'd working clearance "for the" upstanding arm of bellcrank 50. The'up'per branch of the forked forward arm of bellcrank 5E! normally is engaged under the bar 58 to support the bar in a slightly upwardly and rearwardly inclined inef- To afford an ample and rapid swinging movement of the bar in response to rocking of bellcrank 58 said upper branch ofthe forked arm thereof is formed at its forward end with an upstanding hump or cam .portion 50a which normally is engaged with substantially the lowest part of a downwardly :bowed cam lug 5% formed out of bar 58.

The bar 58 is movable downward by gravity, as more fully hereinafter explained, into a line looking position thereof, shown in Figs. 2 and 3, and is there arrested by engagement of the bar with an underlying and padded stop lug 6i ona stop bracket 62. Bracket 62 is supported by the right hand pivot stud 6B for the bar and by a fastening screw 63 held to theframework l2. vent accidentalswinging of the bar upwardand forward over center; the bracket is provided with anoverthrow preventing stop lug 64 which overhangs the bar and is-spaced slightly above the aligned across the machine andwhich engage the forward edge of the bar 58, after a slight depression of the type keys and aslight movement of the type bars, .to prevent typing while thebar 58 is in its line locking position, shown in Fig. 2,.

on the key lever fulcrum rod I4, extends through one of the slots in the key lever guide comb 2i, is normally held rocked up against the key lever stop 2 0 by a returning spring 5'! connected to said keylever 56, and is located at. the right hand side of the system of type key levers IS with its key located at theright hand end of the rear or fourth bank of type keys.

A line locking bar 58 extendstransversely of the machine above the forward and forked arm of bellcrank Elli-and above the forwardarms of the'set of type bar action bellcranks l6; This bar is formed at each end thereof; at its'forward edge with a bearing. sleeve 59,-which two sleeves are journaled on horizontal pivot studs held to framework l2 at opposite sides of the machine and extending transversely of the -machine to support the bar for up and down swinging. The

rear edge of bar 58 is provided with a notch 58c A The carriage escapement (not shown) is actuated in known manner by a type bar actuated universal bar (not shown) with which the type bars make drivingiengagement, as is'usual in the art, duringa final short .part oftheir printing strokes. Since the line lock bar, when in looking position, blocks printing strokes of the. type bar actions when only a shortinitial partcfsuch strokesis completed, the type actions not only are blocked against printing, but also are prevented from actuating the. escapement. According to the present invention, the escapement actuating space bara'otion or mechanism of the machineincludes novel means whereby the line lock bar also blocks actuation of the space bar mechanism when said line locking bar-moves in to locking position. This space bar mechanism now will be described.

An upstanding escapement actuating tappet lever 65 is journaled at 66 on frame .IZ to rock fore and aft of the machine and is located sub-;

stantially mediallyof the sides .of the machine.

The space barlil'is supported by the usual rock 7 arms '68 fixed on a rock shaft 59 journaled' in frame l2. Theshaft 69-has an upstanding rock arm'lil located medially of the sides of the machine and connected with the lowerend of tappet lever 65 by a'novel .connection wherebythe space To pretguiding-slot- 16 through which the bellcrank-rfulcrumrod I1 extends, said rod' normally passing through the lower end portion of the'slotr A returning spring I1'isconnected'tolever 55 to return the space 'bar mechanism .toithe'normal position shown in'iFigxl in which a stop-'18 on the space bar arm 68 isrenga-gedu'ndera stop19fon frame I 2. When the: space "barf is t depressed to trip. the escapement; an upstanding projection 80"on link '14 movesdownward and rearwardunder the line look 'bar while the: latteris in its ineffective position, but when: the line lock bar drops to :its locking-positionits rear edge :is 1ocatedimmediately in front. of'pro'jectiontu and blocks depression of .the' space barr' "..i The improvedline locking"and* margin releas ing m'echanis'm'operates asfollowsz As the carriage," in advancing toward undercontrol of the escapement; approaches the end' of 'the writing line for which'the right 'hand margin f stop 23 *is'set, the'ca'm edge" 23b "of "said stop makes engagement with the forward end of the counter stop 33 and first rocks "the counter stop into arrested engagement with the stop lug 31"onlev'er 28 and then cams th'e'counter stop and lever 28 into the position shown in Fig. 5, at at' which time abutment 23a of stop 23' engages the counter stop 33 "and arrests leftward travel of thecarriage at'the' selected right hand marginal point. Rocking of 1ever 28 into the 'po'sition shown inFig. '5, rocksthe shaft' 4t and thrusts the link 44 downward far enough to first take up the lost-motion in the pin 7 and slot connection 4641 and to then rock'thebellcrank 48 tothrust the link 5| forward and rock the bellc'rank 59 into the position shown in Fig. 2,"'whereupon the linelocking bar 58'gravitates into its line-locking position "shown-in'Figi'2'" and blocks effective actuation of all of thetype bar actions and of the spacebar mechanism. "In this li'ne -locki'ng position of the parts, the'lower branch of the forward forked arm of bellcrank 50 is rocked downward slightly away from'the stud 55. on'the margin release key lever 56.

" To'release the line lock and permit typing in the right hand margin, asiforcompleting' a word or syllable, the'key of the margin release key lever is depressed,rockingsaid key lever into the position shown in Fig. 3a This causes thestud 55 on said key lever to engage the lower branch of the forked arm of'bellcreinkill and rock said bellcrank'farther'into the position shown in li'ig. '3, which action farther? advances link 5 land-bellcrank 48 to pull link'fl farther downward and cause the rock shaft and rock-arm" 38 to rock the lever 23" f rOI'n the pos tion-s own ifi'Fig'l 5 to the position shown in Fig. '6." This' 'retractsthe counter stop 33 from engagement with'abutment 23a. of the right hand margin stop 23, whereupon spring 36 swings counter" stop "33 back'into its normal spaced relation to stop lug 3'| on lever 28 so that the front end'0f 'countr'stop 33 is located to the right of abutment' 23a and will not,

the; left Depression of counter stop 33 intheisame'imannerzasthe cam The" abutment v surface 23b'on margin stop 23. 26a of stop 26' engages counter stop'33 to finally arrest the'carriage' andcxtends' so far rearward that counter stop 33 cannot be retracted by the margin release key far enough to clear said abutment; Onret'urnof the carriage after typing in the right hand margin, the abutment on the righthand margin stop-23 rocksthecounterstop 33' rightward and by-passes the counter stop without arresting return of the carriage.

Arrest of return movement of the carriage at theleft hand marginal position for which the .left hand margin stop 22 is'set occurs when the abutment portion 22a of margin stop22'engages p 'the left hand side'of' its slidable counterstop 32.

Such arrangement has'no-effect 'onthe line lock ing and margin releasing mechanism; To return the carriage farther, for typing in the left hand margin, the margin releasekey 'is depressed, as in the caseof the release'for the right hand margin, whereuponthe 'parts of the line locking and ment =22a passes the counter stop; "This re'arward movement 'oftliec'o'un'ter' fs'top az'iocks the lever. 28 only part way from it's normal position toward its linelookingeffectingfiositionof Fig,

. 5, and rocksthe'ShaftAOonIy farenough to' drive link 44 downward suificiently'to takeup, or'sub stantially take umthe lost motion in the pin and slot connection 46 4l;' so that no mbvementip'f the line lockingbaij58"occurs} I Return of'the carriage 'beyond the point for which the left hand margin StOp'ZZ iS set is limited by engagement of the'lefthandfinalfor ter minal stop 25 on the margin stopf'bahwith anabutment or should'er8l on "plate2'l.

Weclaim:

1. A typ ewriti ng'maehinefhaving, in com in:

.tiony a platen' carriage reciproclable inf letter feeding and return directionsf'a" set of key} operated type baractua'ting levers} a m 'argin' jr'e lease key lever having alateral projeetion, re-

turn spring connected to: said margin release l iey' lever, a return stop for said margin release key lever, a linelocking member mounted for gravi-- tational movementlfrom an'fineffective position into aline lockingpositionin which it blocks efiective'act'uation of"'s'a'id typeba r actuating levers, a stop engageablefby said member" to" arrest it in line'lockingposition, a controlling lever f or s'aid line loc kingmember, a return spring connected to "said: controlling lever to normally hold it rocked against saidmem berand the pro--.

jection on" thegmar'gin release key lever to yield ingly hold said member'in its ineffective position,

a' marginis top mounted to travel 7 with the car riage, and meanscontrolled by saidmarginstop for rocking.saidjcontrolling lever out of engage- I operable tor free the carriage -f or ,furtherletter feed travel by a further rocking of said controland 'return' directionsga line locking member mounted on the frame'for gravitational movement from an ineffective position into an effective position, a stop, for arresting said member in effective position, a right hand margin stop mounted, to travel with the. carriage, a margin release key leverfulcrumed on the frame, areturn spring and a'return stop for said key lever, acontrol lever fulcrumed on the frame, a return spring. for said'controllever normally holding said lever rockedintoengagement with said key lever and said line locking member to support said member in ineffective position, and counter stop mechanism for said margin stop mounted on the main frame-and connected with the control lever for retraction out of effective relation to said margin stop when saidkey lever is rocked away fromits stop and for partial retraction of said mechanismby said margin stop to rock said control lever out of engagement with said key lever and line locking member preliminary to arrest of letter feed movement of the carriage .by said margin stop and counter stop mechanisnr 3. A typewriting machine having a carriage movable in letter feed and return directions, left and right hand margin stops mounted to travel with the carriage, counterstop .mechanism for said margin stops mounted for' movement from an'eifective position to an ineffective position and movable by the right hand margin-stop to an intermediate position preparatory to arrest of letter feed movement of the carriage, a margin release key lever, areturn spring and a return stop for said key lever, a control lever connected with said counter stop mechanism, a spring for rock ing said control lever to a normal position in which it is arrested by and abutted with the key lever for rocking-of the control lever by the key lever to a, positionin moving into which the control lever moves the counter stop mechanism to its ineffective position, said control lever being movable relatively to the key lever to an intermediate position by said counter stop mecha nism as the latter is moved to its intermediate position by; the right hand margin stop, and a line locking member mounted for gravitational movement to an effective position from an ineffective position to which it is movable by the nism and the control lever to permitsuch shifting of the counter stop mechanism by said margin stops without. rocking of the control lever from its normal position, and wherein separate springs are connectedto the counter stop mechanism and the control lever respectively, for moving them to their respective normal positions.

5. A typewriting machine having a carriage reciprocable in letter feed and return directions, a set of key-operated type bar actuating levers, a

8 horizontal 'rfulcrum :rod "for said levers, 'a line locking membermounted for gravitational movement fromianineffective-position into a, line looking position in which it is engageable bysaid type bar actuatingleversto block effectual actuation V of the'latter, a control lever fulcrumed on said rod and on which said member normally is seated, a return spring connected 'to said control lever, a margin release key lever in abuttive engagement with whichthe control lever normally is :held byritsu'return spring and which is actuative to rock the controllever to a margin releasingposition, :.a:return spring and return stop for the margin :release .keylever; a space bar mechanism includingaflink guided on said fulcrum rodtomormally .imove transversely of. the rod upon actuationiofisaidmechanismi and to be blocked against such movements by the line looking member when; the. latter is in line locking position to thereby block effectual actuation of: the space bar mechanism, a, pair of marginstops mounted to travel with the carriage, and counter stop mechanism forsaid margin stops connected set of key-operatedtype. "bar actuating levers,'a

horizontal fulcrum rod for. said levers, a line locking barpivoted'to swing-about an axis which is parallel to said rodand adjacent one longitudinal edge of the bar, a stopunderlying said bar to arrest gravitational movementof the bar at a line locking position in which the bar blocks effectual actuation of said type bar actuating levers, a margin release 'keylever fulcrumed to rock about an axis which is parallel to said fulcrum rod, return spring and, a return stop for said margin release key lever, a control lever fulcrumed on said fulcrum rod and normally abutted with said key lever'and said line locking bar to hold the bar elevated abovelsaid stop in an ineffective position in'which the type baractuatinglevers are effectually operab1e;a spring urgingsaid control lever against said bar and key V lever, and line end stop mechanism for rocking the control lever at a selected letter feedposition of the carriage 1to1 permit the line locking bar to gravitateinto engagement with its underlying stop and releasable by :said control ,lever to permit continuediletter-feed travel of thevcarriage beyond said letter feed position.

p 7. Atypewriting machine, as claimedin; claim 6, having a second stop which overhangs thelin locking bar in its inefiectiveposition. V

,MURENCE, B. HILIQ ICHARLES WALKER References Cited .in thevfile or this pear V V UNITED STATES'PATENTS 7 Number Name I Date 594,978, Barney o Dec. '7, 1897 1,447,639 Barr et a1. Mar. 6, 19,23 FOREIGN PATENTS v Number Country I Date 267,518 Germany .,N0v. 20, 1913 

